Architecture and Public Policy

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CIS explores how changes in the architecture of computer networks affect the economic environment for innovation and competition on the Internet, and how the law should react to those changes. This work has lead us to analyze the issue of network neutrality, perhaps the Internet's most debated policy issue, which concerns Internet user's ability to access the content and software of their choice without interference from network providers.

Shaheen Shariff, Ph.D., Associate Professor, Department of Integrated Studies, Faculty of Education, McGill University, Montreal, Canada. Dr. Shariff's research and teaching are grounded in the study of law as it impacts educational policy and practice. In particular, she is interested in studying legal issues that emerge in relation to on-line social communications such as cyber-hate, cyber-bullying, sexting, free expression, privacy harm, libel and criminal harassment. Read more » about Shaheen Shariff

Lauren Turek is a doctoral candidate in history at the University of Virginia and a dissertation completion fellow at the John C. Danforth Center on Religion and Politics at Washington University in St. Louis. She specializes in the history of U.S. foreign relations, politics, and 20th-century American evangelicalism. Lauren is currently finishing her dissertation, entitled “To Bring the Good News to All Nations: Evangelicals, Human Rights, and U.S. Read more » about Lauren Turek

Jeffrey L. Vagle is Lecturer in Law and Executive Director of the Center for Technology, Innovation and Competition at the University of Pennsylvania Law School. His research interests include surveillence law, cryptography and cybersecurity law, electronic privacy, Internet architecture, and networked economies and societies. A particular focus of his work is the study of the societal, political, historical, and economic effects of government surveillance, especially among marginalized or disenfranchised populations. Mr. Read more » about Jeffrey Vagle

On paper, of course, this sounds like a fine idea. As Palo Alto State Senator Joe Simitian, the bill’s sponsor, put it, “The Internet makes many things easier. One of those, unfortunately, is pretending to be someone else. When that happens with the intent of causing harm, folks need a law they can turn to.”

Gallatin was a remarkable figure in the early history of the federal government, and his accomplishments include being the longest-serving Treasury secretary (1801-1812) to date. His report on the Subject of Public Roads and Canals, completed at the request of Congress, remains one of the seminal documents in the history of American infrastructure. It is a masterpiece of dispassionate policy-making and clear-headed writing. Read more » about The First National Broadband Plan

I have a long opinion piece on CNet today, arguing that much of the talk of “reclassifying” or “relabeling” broadband Internet access to bring it under the FCC’s regulatory authority is just that—talk.

On April 6th, the D.C. Circuit Court of Appeals ruled definitively that the squishy doctrine of “ancillary jurisdiction” provides no authority for the FCC to impose its net neutrality rules on broadband Internet providers.

On Wednesday, millions of Americans visiting their favorite websites will encounter the same dreaded image: the spinning wheel of death. This is the symbol of the great "Internet Slowdown" -- a coordinated day of action among hundreds of organizers and some of the world's largest tech firms, including Netflix, Twitter, Etsy, Kickstarter, Mozilla, Foursquare, Reddit, and WordPress. Together they are showing the American public what most of the Internet would look like in a world without "net neutrality." In a word: slow.

In December 2010, the Federal Communications Commission (FCC) adopted the Open Internet Order, which enacted binding network neutrality rules for the first time. Network neutrality rules limit the ability of Internet service providers to interfere with the applications, content and services on their networks; they allow users to decide how they want to use the Internet without interference from Internet service providers. In January of this year, the Court of Appeals for the D.C. Circuit struck down the core provisions of the Open Internet Order – the rules against blocking and discrimination. Read more » about Network Neutrality and Quality of Service: What a Non-Discrimination Rule Should Look Like

Comcast Corp. v. FCC is a 2010 United States Court of Appeals for the District of Columbia case holding that the Federal Communications Commission (FCC) does not have ancillary jurisdiction over Comcast’s Internet service under the language of the Communications Act of 1934. In so holding, the Court vacated a 2008 order issued by the FCC that asserted jurisdiction over Comcast’s network management polices and censured Comcast from interfering with its subscribers' use of peer-to-peer software. Read more » about Comcast Corporation v. Federal Communications Commission

"Andrew Bridges, a partner and Internet law litigator and policy analyst at Fenwick & West LLP, said, “All sectors of society and the economy will feel the development,” he predicted. “The principal social and political difficulties will have to do with ownership of information, privacy/security, and surveillance… Intention will always be a critical part of normal interaction of persons—they will still send texts or make phone calls and not just passively stream their experiences to others….Read more » about Main Report: An In-depth Look at Expert Responses

""It's a huge gift to Verizon and the other [Internet service providers] because it is exactly what they have been asking for since 2006," Marvin Ammori, an adviser to technology start-ups and a Washington telecommunications lawyer, said of Wheeler's proposal to designate lanes."Read more » about FCC chief's Internet proposal draws backlash

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On 24th February, the 2015 Digital Leaders Annual Lecture, ‘Digital Democracy,’ will take place at the Houses of Parliament.

The lecture will be hosted by Chloe Smith MP; the lecturer is Dr. Ben Scott, Senior Advisor to the Open Technology Institute at the New America Foundation in Washington DC and a Visiting Fellow at the Stiftung Neue Verantwortung in Berlin. Read more » about Digital Leaders Annual Lecture 2015

ACS, The Center on the Legal Profession, and The Center for Internet and Society are pleased to welcome Valarie Kaur to lead a discussion of storytelling, media, and the law. We will screen Kaur's film Alienation and Kaur will lead a discussion of the film and her approach to telling legal stories in the public sphere. Read more » about Storytelling Law: An Evening with Valarie Kaur